Design Wall Monday

If you read my last post, you know that my house has been filled with even more laughter and happiness than usual because my six sisters were here. Even though the majority went home yesterday, Pat and Annie are still here because Pat's flight doesn't leave until this afternoon and Annie is taking her to the airport. 

Lots of fun projects were worked on and many were completed over the past five days, but this quilt remains on my design wall.

Isn't this beautiful? The center is the Dream Big panel by Hoffman Fabrics and this picture does not do it justice. It is striking, as are all the colorways available.

I have to be honest. This is on my design wall, but it's not my quilt. It's Pat's and we are trying to decide how to quilt this. A Google search produced a bunch of amazing options, so now we are more unsure than ever. It doesn't matter though; I'm ok with having this on the wall and looking at it over and over and over...

Paula worked with the same panel and planned her borders to go in reverse order of the colors in the flower. This picture was taken in haste as she was packing up to go home. I don't know why she was not receptive to the idea of leaving the quilt with me. :-)

Terri bought the grey panel, but kept that tucked away to be worked on at home. It is beautiful too and I can't wait to see what she does with it. 

This afternoon, I plan to spend some time cleaning and reorganizing the sewing room. I've had some discussions with a couple of the sisters about making some layout changes and look forward to trying them. I'm excited about the possibilities and hope that this also helps me purge a few things that have been gathering dust for quite some time. Maybe I'll host a giveaway or two.

What's on your design wall today?

Check out the eye candy at 

Judy's Doll Quilts and Small Quilts

and

Beth's Monday Making 

Sewing/Sister Time

I've been away from the blog and most of my electronic devices for a few days now, as I am enjoying our annual "Sister Time." I do want to drop in and post a couple of pictures of what's happening.

There's a lot of laughing, sewing, eating, and reminiscing going on and it's been wonderful. Lots of projects are being completed, many of which were UFOs and that is pretty darn awesome. There's also a lot of learning and practicing of new techniques, which means there is also a lot of collaboration and opinion-giving taking place. It's fun to watch and be a part of that.  

 Paula is learning to do the actual quilting! 

Pat has been very busy, as usual.

Terri has already made a big bag and is now working on making bowl cozies. 

Barb made a bunch of cozies and a dress for one of her granddaughters. At least one more dress will be made, as well as a couple of other projects. Barb and Terri are deep in conversation about some fabric choices. 

Kathie finished up a quilt top that she started last year, but I did not get a picture of that. Oops! She is now working on her first rug. Isn't this going to be fun?

I've finished a quilt top and a wall hanging, but have not taken a picture yet. I did make one oval rug and am working on a rectangular one now. Don't you love this teal confetti ombre fabric? I used yardage instead of a variety of fabrics. 

Annie has been busy making carrot table runners that are so darn cute (again, no picture yet), as well as helping Paula with her projects. Her machine has been busy, but took a well-deserved break last night.  She's got things organized and ready to start working again whenever she decides to sit and sew. She's always so organized and I admire that! I really need to learn from her. :-)

 

I love how the back room looks at night when our machines are all set up and ready for us to work.

The sewing room, kitchen, and one bathroom is always illuminated.

We took advantage of the beautiful night Thursday and had a bonfire.

I love our time together! 

Design Wall Monday - a day late

I wanted to leave my Memorial Day post up all day yesterday so I'm a day late with my Design Wall Monday post.

I'm working on a number of projects right now, but this is what's on my wall at the moment. The pattern is Cheerful by Andy Knowlton of A Bright Corner

Although the background fabric looks black, it really isn't. It's a charcoal color that I'm sure will show up better when I get a picture outside. The same is true for the other fabrics as well. 

The blocks are all made and I just tossed the background sashing and cornerstones up so I could make a decision on the block placement. I was struggling with doing this when I didn't have the sashing up and my guess is that it's just a mental block. My goal is to start sewing the rows later today. I'm making the throw size, which measures approx. 50" x 66", so this should go together quickly from this point on. 

I'm working on a number of other projects, including a couple of custom order quilts and some Quilt of Valor quilts. (I'm almost always working on QOV quilts because they make great leader/ender projects and I always need a lot for donations.)

I was honored to present a QOV to a local veteran this past Sunday. My friend Eileen made the quilt and she asked me to do the actual presentation. As always, it was very touching and I'll post pictures in the next couple of days.

What are you working on today?

Check out some quilting eye candy at

Judy's Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

and

Beth's Monday Making

Memorial Day Quilts

In honor of Memorial Day and those who gave their lives for our freedom, I am reposting the quilts I made for the American Honor Challenge last year.  

(I will post some Design Wall Monday pictures later.) 

In Your Debt

There is no way for us to repay you for all you did and the sacrifices you made.

Thank you seems such a shallow thing to say, but since there are no other words, 

Thank you and know that I am forever in your debt.

  

Heart and Soul

You are the heart and soul of our nation. 

I will hold you in my heart forever and never forget your sacrifice.

Freedom Rings

Because of you, I have freedoms that are not enjoyed my many others. I know that freedom is not free and that you paid the ultimate price to ensure that freedom does ring for me.

Thank you Blank Quilting for sponsoring the American Honor Quilt Challenge and for continuing to offer wonderful patriotic quilting fabrics. 

Thank you Tana Mueller for designing such a wonderful fabric line. It continues to be my favorite to use for my 

Quilts of Valor and other patriotic quilts.  

Hands2Help Quilts

It's time for the final link up of the 2018 Hands2Help Challenge and I'm happy to be donating four quilts this year. 

I've participated in this challenge for five of the eight years that it's been in existence and I feel that it is such an honor to be a part of it. I really can't thank Sarah (Confessions of a Fabric Addict), enough for all that she has done to organize this. Since 2011 when 47 quilters made and donated 60 quilts, to last year when 125 quilters made and donated 267 quilts, a grand total of 1034 quilts have been donated to those in need. Wonderful!

This year, I've decided to make my donations in honor of Ruth Hubbard, Jack's aunt who passed away November 5, 2107 at the age of 99. Aunt Ruth was such a kind and loving person and she always asked me about my quilting. I can't think of a better way to honor her than to pay it forward, help those in need, and donate quilts in her name. 

Ruth Hubbard, 3/22/1918 - 11/5/2017

From the first time I met her, I knew Aunt Ruth was a special person! She had a gentle spirit about her and always made me feel welcome. Ruth had a wonderful memory, and she and Jack spent many visits looking at old pictures, sharing stories from the past, and reminiscing about world events in general. Since Ruth was born in 1918, she had experienced so many things and it was especially fun to listen to her talk about the many changes she witnessed - including technology. Up until the last year of her life, Ruth used an iPad to keep in touch with family and friends and I do believe that she was much better at it than me.

Ruth had been a first grade teacher for many years and upon her death, a number of former students sent condolences commenting about what a special teacher she was. I have no doubt that was true. Because of her years of working with children, I was very happy to see that one of this year's charities is Little Lamb Foundation for Kids. The following two quilts are on their way to that foundation. 

        

This quilt was made using the Woven pattern by Cluck Cluck Sew. The multi-colored fabric in the center has guitars on it and I thought this might appeal to a youngster who enjoys music.  

I wanted to send a more masculine quilt and decided this one fit the bill. I sewed six large 16 patch blocks and simply added borders. I hope this brings joys to someone and provides a comforting "fabric hug."

The follwing two quilts are on their way to Quilty Hugs for Happy Chemo. 

I made this first quilt as a class sample with the idea that it could be donated when it was no longer needed to advertise the class. I find this to be whimsical and cheery and hope it makes the recipient smile. 

Here's another musical themed quilt made using the Uptown Girl pattern by Creative Sewlutions. This was also made as a class sample with the intention of donating when it was no longer needed for display. 

Last year, Sarah posted the following on her blog:

What does love look like?

It has the hands to help others.

It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy.

It has eyes to see misery and want.

It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men.

That is what love looks like."

                                               St. Augustine  

Love also looks like people like Aunt Ruth. 

I am proud to honor her today and can only hope to be the kind of person she was - a kind and caring soul. Amidst all the sadness and ugliness in the world today, I'm happy to be a part of something so wonderful. 

Thank you Sarah for organizing this! Thank you to all the organizers of the charities, and thank you to everyone who has participated - quilters and sponsors alike. 

Check out the other donation quilts at Confessions of a Fabric Addict. Be sure to check back frequently, as people will be linking their quilt pictures all week. 

Mindless Sewing

Sometimes you just need to take a break to fondle some fabric and do some mindless sewing.

I've been quite busy the last few weeks with classes and programs; and I have some "must do" projects, but I really needed to slow down and clear my mind before diving into them. I decided that snowballing the corner of these blocks was just the thing to do. Ahhhh, I'm almost done with the stack and then I'll be ready to hit the ground running.

Yikes! I just looked at the picture again and think that perhaps I should clean my machine before I do anything else. Do you see the dust? I'm choosing to believe that's a sign of productivity and not lack of housekeeping skills. 😀

By the way, did you notice the new banner at the top of the blog? What do you think?  

Jaftex Warehouse Tour

I was happy to be home today and available to watch my friend Scott Fortunoff have a live Facebook tour of the Jaftex warehouses in Seneca, South Carolina.

In case you don't know, Jaftex recently purchased Free Spirit and you'll get to see some of that fabric as well as the many others manufactured by Jaftex - Blank, Henry Glass & Co., AE Nathan, Studioe Fabrics, Fabric Editions.

This tour provides an inside and behind the scenes look at what goes on in a fabric warehouse, including what's involved when you decide to change warehouse.  :-)  I found this fun and interesting and am sure you will too. 

  

Here's a link to the tour.  Enjoy!